Etymograph

English

jan

Jan comes from Arabic جَنّ (jann) ‘jinn, demon’.

  1. Arabicc. 500–presentجَنّ1‘jinn, demon’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1888jan1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English jan
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1888, Charles Montagu Doughty: “He cast out the demons of possessed persons, and…”.

Lineage

  1. Arabicc. 500–presentجَنّWiktionary, English jan‘jinn, demon’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1888janWiktionary, English jan. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1888, Charles Montagu Doughty: “He cast out the demons of possessed persons, and…”

Today it means

noun —

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “jan”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Arabic جَنّ / jan